Communication between software applications and the programs which comprise the applications is an important issue in any computer system. One method of providing for such communications is through an application program interface (API). Several different API's are available for facilitating communication between application programs including Berkeley Sockets, IBM's CPI-C, Microsoft's NetBEUI, WinSock and PeerLogic's PIPES Platform.TM..
For general reference see Comer, Douglas E and Stevens, David L., Internetworking with TCP/IP, vol. III, Prentice-Hall, (1993); PIPES Platform User's Guide and Reference MaNual, PeerLogic, Inc., (1993); "X/Open Transport Interface (XTI)", X/Open CAE Specification, X/Open Company Limited, (1992); Stevens, W. Richard, Unix Network Programming, Prentice-Hall, (1990); Common Programming Interface Communications Reference, Fourth Edition, IBM, (1991); Schmidt, Douglas, "Concurrent O-O Network Programming With C++", C++ World, 1994; and Bach, Maurice J., The Design of the Unix Operating System, Prentice-Hall, (1986).
Each of the API's, however, has advantages and disadvantages which make it a better or worse choice than using another of the API's under similar circumstances. And, in many cases, it may be necessary for one application to use more than one of the API's because two or more applications with which it needs to communicate are using different ones of the API's available.
Thus, programming an application to use only one of the API's means that the application will not operate at peak performance under some circumstances. However, reprogramming the application to use a different API when circumstances change can become time consuming and increases the opportunity to introduce errors into the application because of the operational nuances of each API. Thus, it is desirable to have a common API which can be used to communicate with a variety of other API's.
Furthermore, as more efficient and/or more flexible API's become available, the desire to use the new API to take advantage of the latest features or to remedy past problems will sometimes necessitate a conversion. It is desirable to do such a conversion with minimum, if any, impact to the application.
These system can be described in terms of object models, functional models and dynamic models as discussed by James Rumbaugh et al. in the book Object-Oriented Modeling and Design published in 1991 by Prentice-Hall (the "OOMD") which is herein incorporated by reference in it's entirety. According to the book OOMD, an object model of a system describes the object types which comprise the system and also shows the relationships between the object types. A functional model of the system shows the processes and data structures of the system and the flow of data therebetween but does not indicate the sequence of processing. The dynamic model of the system does show the processing sequence of the system. That sequencing is shown primarily as transitions from one state to another.
Thus, what is needed is a method and system for providing a common communications interface between software application programs.